Test Cricket Tours - South Africa to
India 1996-97
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Tour of
India 1996-97 Captain: Hansie Cronje |
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Twenty-first official Test tour First Test-playing tour of India by South Africa (October - December 1996) |
South Africa had
just played a one-day international tournament in Kenya, which they won, and
the selectors retained the same fourteen players for the Titan Cup triangular
with which this tour began. South Africa won all six of the preliminary
limited-overs international matches, but then lost to India in the final. The Test series was
played between two well-matched teams. India had not lost at home for ten
years while South Africa remained undefeated in all the Test series, apart
from West Indies 1992, played since its readmission to Test cricket. Needing just 170
runs to win the first Test, India batted poorly in the second innings at
Ahmedabad and lost. Bob Woolmer complained of poor practice facilities as the
South Africans struggled to come to terms with the conditions. Better batting
at Calcutta and Lance Klusener’s remarkable bowling
performance on his debut levelled the series, before a crushing defeat on
another poorly prepared pitch at Kanpur. Although the extent
of match fixing in cricket was not revealed until the next tour of India in
1999-00, the team were offered money to throw a match on this tour, too. The
players were already unhappy about this late addition to the itinerary at the
end of a tough tour, as well as the benefit match for Amarnath
being billed as an official one-day international, but several members
strongly protested the rest of the team not to become involved with fixing. |
Other
South African tours Previous
Tour Zimbabwe
1995-96 Next
tour Pakistan
1997-98 Next
tour of India 1999-2000 |
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Members of the Test tour party (14
+ 2) Openers Gary Kirsten, Andrew Hudson, Herschelle
Gibbs. Batsmen Hansie Cronje, Daryll Cullinan, Jonty Rhodes, John Commins (r) Wicket-keepers Dave Richardson Spin bowlers Nicky Boje, Derek Crookes, Pat Symcox, Paul Adams (r) Fast bowlers
Fanie de Villiers, Allan Donald, Lance Klusener,
Brian McMillan. |
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Representation of teams: EP Eastern Province (1) FS - Free State (3) N - Natal (5) NT Northern Transvaal (1) T - Transvaal (1) WP - Western Province (4) Average age of team at time of first Test match (20 November 1996): 26 yrs 6 months ODI Member of
squad for the Titan Cup World Series. |
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Test Appearances made before the tour |
Richardson 28, Cronje 27,
Rhodes 27, Donald 25, Hudson 25,
McMillan 23, Kirsten 20, Cullinan 19, de Villiers 14, Symcox 6, Adams 2,
Boje 0,
Crookes 0, Gibbs 0, Klusener 0. |
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Team Officials |
Muzzell was an an Executive Committee member of the United Cricket Board. |
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Selectors |
Peter Pollock (convenor of selectors), Clive Rice,
Bob Woolmer (coach), |
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Selection |
Unavailable: Craig Matthews (so Kirsten took over the
vice-captaincy); Brett Schultz;
Jacques Kallis (stress fracture of back);
Shaun Pollock (ankle); Paul Adams (groin injury). Tour Party Announced: 5 November 1996. The 14 players who did duty in both the four-nations
tournament in Kenya and in the Titan Cup series in India were retained as the
Test squad. Not selected: Meyrick Pringle,
Adam Bacher. An unnamed keeper was on standby and contingency travel
arrangements had been made for him to be flown out to India (an eight hour
flight) if necessary. |
Time between selection and departure from South Africa x days (5 November to ) |
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Travel |
Only a few days after return
from the Kenya ODI tournament, they flew out again to India. The team arrived
in Bombay on 15 October, and later that evening flew to Hyderabad for their
first match in the Titan Cup. |
Time spent in 61 days (15 October - 15 December) |
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On-tour selection panel |
Hansie Cronje (captain), Bob Woolmer (coach), Robbie Muzzell (manager) |
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Reinforcements |
Paul Adams and Shaun Pollock had been injured and were on
standby. Within hours of playing his first match back with Western Province Paul
Adams was asked on 14 November to reinforce the team in India. He flew out on
Monday morning 18 November, arrived on Tuesday and was thrown into the first
Test on Wednesday.
Jonty Rhodes strained a hamstring in the first Test and John Commins was called up.
Commins himself soon became unavailable for
selection with a fractured finger. Allan Donald went home with a bruised heel after the Second Test
and was not replaced. |
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Fixtures/Results |
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“ not first-class § one-day internationals Time
spent in before First Test: 36
days (15 October - 20 November) |
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Test appearances on tour |
3 -
Adams, Cronje, Cullinan,
Hudson, Kirsten, McMillan,
Richardson, Symcox 2 - de Villiers, Donald,
Gibbs, Klusener. 1 - Rhodes. 0 - Boje, Crookes. |
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Highlights |
- In the first Test Donald
took 4-37 in the Indian first innings and 3-32 in the second. - At Calcutta Gary Kirsten became the third South African to score a
century in each innings of a Test. - Hudson and Kirsten had an opening stand of 236 in the first innings at Calcutta - Cullinan also scored a century, with an unbeaten 153 at Eden
Gardens - Lance Klusener secured the win with a
sensational haul of 8-64 after going wicketless in
the first innings. - Herschelle Gibbs scored 200 (his maiden
double century) and 171 against India A at Nagpur. |
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Tour Summary |
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Return to South Africa |
Jonty Rhodes and Allan Donald flew home with injuries on Monday 2
December arriving in Johannesburg next day. Return to South Africa was on 15 December 1996. |
Time away from South Africa
x days (14 October to 15? November) |
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